1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a polishing apparatus, and more particularly to a polishing apparatus for polishing a workpiece such as a semiconductor wafer to a flat mirror finish.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recent rapid progress in semiconductor device integration demands smaller and smaller wiring patterns or interconnections and also narrower spaces between interconnections which connect active areas. One of the processes available for forming such interconnection is photolithography. Though the photolithographic process can form interconnections that are at most 0.5 μm wide, it requires that surfaces which pattern images are to be focused on by a stepper be as flat as possible because the depth of focus of the optical system is relatively small.
It is therefore necessary to make the surfaces of semiconductor wafers flat for photolithography. One customary way of flattening the surfaces of semiconductor wafers is to polish them with a polishing apparatus.
Conventionally, a polishing apparatus has a turntable and a top ring which rotate at respective individual speeds. An abrasive cloth is attached to the upper surface of the turntable. A semiconductor wafer to be polished is placed on the abrasive cloth and clamped between the top ring and the turntable. During operation, the top ring exerts a certain pressure on the turntable, and the surface of the semiconductor wafer held against the abrasive cloth is therefore polished to a flat mirror finish while the top ring and the turntable are rotating.
The polishing apparatus is required to have such performance that the surfaces of semiconductor wafers have a highly accurate flatness. Therefore, it is preferable that the lower end surface of the top ring which holds a semiconductor wafer and the contact surface of the abrasive cloth which is held in contact with the semiconductor wafer, and hence the surface of the turntable to which the abrasive cloth is attached, have a highly accurate flatness, and those surfaces which are highly accurately flat have been used in the art.
It is known that the polishing action of the polishing apparatus is affected not only by the configurations of the holding surface of the top ring and the contact surface of the abrasive cloth, but also by the relative speed between the abrasive cloth and the semiconductor wafer, the distribution of pressure applied to the surface of the semiconductor wafer which is being polished, the amount of the abrasive liquid on the abrasive cloth, and the period of time when the abrasive cloth has been used. It is considered that the surface of the semiconductor wafer can be highly accurately flat if the above factors which affect the polishing action of the polishing apparatus are equalized over the entire surface of the semiconductor wafer to be polished.
However, some of the above factors can easily be equalized over the entire surface of the semiconductor wafer, but the other factors cannot be equalized. For example, the relative speed between the abrasive cloth and the semiconductor wafer can easily be equalized by rotating the turntable and the top ring at the same rotational speed and in the same direction. However, it is difficult to equalize the amount of the abrasive liquid on the abrasive cloth because of centrifugal forces imposed on the abrasive liquid.
The above approach which tries to equalize all the factors affecting the polishing action, including the flatnesses of the lower end surface of the top ring and the upper surface of the abrasive cloth on the turntable, over the entire surface of the semiconductor wafer to be polished poses limitations on efforts to make the polished surface of the semiconductor wafer flat, often resulting in a failure to accomplish a desired degree of flatness of the polished surface.
It has been customary to achieve a more accurate flatness by making the holding surface of the top ring concave or convex to develop a certain distribution of pressure on the surface of the semiconductor wafer for thereby correcting irregularities of the polishing action which are caused by an irregular entry of the abrasive liquid and variations in the period of time when the abrasive cloth has been used. It has also been practiced to correct irregularities of the polishing action by using a top ring which has a diaphragm and changing a distribution of pressure applied by the top ring while the semiconductor wafer is being polished.
However, various problems have arisen in the case where a specific configuration is applied to the holding surface of the top ring. Specifically, since the holding surface of the top ring is held in contact with the semiconductor wafer at all times, the holding surface of the top ring affects the polishing action continuously all the time while the semiconductor wafer is being polished. Because the configuration of the holding surface of the top ring has direct effect on the polishing action, it is highly complex to correct irregularities of the polishing action by intentionally making the holding surface of the top ring concave or convex, i.e., non-flat. If the holding surface of the top ring which has been made intentionally concave or convex is inadequate, the polished surface of the semiconductor wafer may not be made as flat as desired, or irregularities of the polishing action may not be sufficiently corrected, so that the polished surface of the semiconductor wafer may not be sufficiently flat.
In addition, inasmuch as the holding surface of the top ring is of substantially the same size as the surface of the semiconductor wafer to be polished, the holding surface of the top ring is required to be made irregular in a very small area. Because such surface processing is highly complex, it is not easy to correct irregularities of the polishing action by means of the configuration of the holding surface of the top ring.
The conventional polishing apparatuses, particularly those for polishing semiconductor wafers, are required to polish workpiece surfaces to higher flatness. There have not been available suitable means and apparatus for polishing workpieces to shapes which are intentionally not flat or for polishing workpieces such that desired localized areas of workpiece surfaces are polished to different degrees.